Story of my StreetFighter wreck..

[paelscrit]

Hello.. I believe this is my first post but have been reading this forum since I bought my 2011 StreetFighter in May of '11. You guys are great! I wrecked my bike and want to share my story and would appreciate any advice.

So here is my story.. Somehow I wrecked my StreetFighter in a single vehicle accident on an empty road I have no memory of what happened at all. I was lifelighted to the hospital and was in ICU for a week with brain bleeding/concussion/swelling, broken jaw requiring a metal plate and braces and some small cuts near my eye requiring stitches. I was completely out of it for a week (unconscious for 4 days), can't remember anything. I worried the hell out of everyone, but I was *extremely* lucky. My brain is fine, Jaw is healing (braces are already out), returned to work 3 weeks after the accident. It has only been 4 weeks now and I'm basically fine, people that saw me in the hospital and the doctors can not believe my recovery. The nurses and doctors that received me in at the hospital didn't think I would live at first. I already hit my maximum out of pocket expenses on my medical insurance (9k).The wreck may have been a blessing in disguise. I was not wearing my helmet. I know, I know, stupid decision. I am now a helmet advocate and regret my stupid overconfidence. Anything can happen!

The bike was mildly damaged. I broke the rear view mirrors and blinkers off, cracked the back plastic part (perhaps I indo'ed), a few very small scratches on the front fender and headlight and that is all the damage I can detect. My mother took it to a bike shop and filed an insurance claim while I was in a coma. They estimated 13,500 to repair. It's crazy! They estimated to replace things I can't find any damage on. The insurance company of course is totaling it out. I tried to convince them that the damage was much less but the insurance adjuster agreed with the shop on the repairs. It's ridiculous. The bike is being financed (still owe 15k) so I have no control of the situation. Any advice on how to handle this would be appreciated. I would really like to keep the bike, I loved it. The bike has termignoni full exhaust, rizoma frame sliders, rizoma carbon tank protector, brand new SuperCorsa tires and already had the 650 mile service. I am going to lose all the money I have spent on it so far, which is A LOT. It's terrible but I still consider myself extremely lucky as things could have been much worse. I could have broken my neck/back, had severe brain damage or died. Like I said, I believe this was a blessing in disguise, although, it is turning out to be a very expensive blessing lol. Any advice would be appreciated.

I also would like to tell everyone that rides without a helmet.. IT'S NOT WORTH IT! If I had a helmet on, I probably would have got up and rode home and fixed the bike myself. I have been riding dirtbikes (CRF450 now) for like 16 years (I turned 30 in the hospital) and felt extremely comfortable on my bike. I thought I was in control at all times and wouldn't wreck, I never felt like I wasn't in complete control at all times. No close calls for the 5 months since I bought it. I have no idea what happened but I somehow wrecked on a street with no cars or anything. It is possible I lost control but it could have been ANYTHING. Please wear a helmet at all times when on a motorcycle! Anything can Happen!

Okay, well I guess I will leave it at that. Just wanted to share my story with everyone. Also, any advice from people who have gone through something similar would be nice. Today I made a spreadsheet of all the money I put into my bike and scanned all the receipts so I can fight for a high payoff with the insurance company. My policy had a $2k maximum upgrade on it, I regret doing that. I don't understand why they are totaling it out if I would be willing to take much, much less as a repair bill (like $2k). They won't even let me get a second estimate. I don't understand. Thanks for reading my story AND PLEASE WEAR YOUR RIDING GEAR AT ALL TIMES!

[****]

So you went from a CRF450 (and other dirtbikes), to the F1098? Is that correct?

The only advice I have for you, is to keep sharing your story with those who will listen, and also choose not to wear their helmets. I'm personally very happy you lived and are seemingly okay. Yes, you are very lucky.
A 5mph crash without a helmet could kill you very easily, let alone being at speed without a helmet.

Best of luck to ya.

[Gilly]

First off, glad you are ok... so to speak.

I'm just curious as to why you thought that riding safe has anything to do with not wearing a helmet?

People who scoff at safety gear, and I'm not saying this is you, but people think that it's for those other guys who go to fast, wreck all the time, pull wheelies etc.

Riding gear is for when shit happens. Wet roads, debris, animal crossing, child playing ball, car doesn't see you, truck loses cargo in front of you, sudden down, oily roads, gravely roads, dirt roads, zombie attack, etc.

Riding gear is not for when things are going fine. It's for when things don't go fine and in that one millisecond you become self aware that the ride is over and free flight is about to begin.

If you care to really impact people, and you have a snap shot of you in hospital. Carry that around with you and when you see someone not wearing a helmet. Just show them the picture. I really am glad you are ok and you have been given that second chance. Good luck with the bike/insurance situation.

[****]

As CTS would say...."+1098".

Couldn't have said it better myself. :thumbup:

[Bill A]

It sure seems like there are BIG pieces of the story missing. They wouldn't total the bike for broken plastic and mirrors.

As for the cause...it could be anything:
- entering into a corner too hot resulting in a crash
- debris on the road
- critter on the roadway
- any number of things

We'll probably never know (at least with the limited amount of info provided).

The important take-aways for me are:
- I am glad you are here to tell the story
- Always wear your gear (I'm glad you learned that lesson)
- "It" can happen to anyone anytime. Always ride carefully.

[paelscrit]

Yes.. That is correct. I rode 80cc dirt bikes A LOT as a child, I rode like every day from age 11 to 15. I had 3 different bikes. I even rode motocross as a child, I was pretty good but not great at motocross. Then my dirt bike got stolen when I was 15. I bought the '09 CRF450R 3 years ago (27yrs old) and have been riding it somewhat infrequently due to the Houston heat and my work hours. Then I got my first street bike the StreetFighter in May and had put about 1500 miles on it before the accident. That is my riding experience. It doesn't seem like a lot, but I was better than it might seem (or so I thought) and I felt very comfortable and in control at all times. It's a great handling bike! Thanks for your comments.

Originally Posted by ****

So you went from a CRF450 (and other dirtbikes), to the F1098? Is that correct?

The only advice I have for you, is to keep sharing your story with those who will listen, and also choose not to wear their helmets. I'm personally very happy you lived and are seemingly okay. Yes, you are very lucky.
A 5mph crash without a helmet could kill you very easily, let alone being at speed without a helmet.

Best of luck to ya.

[paelscrit]

Well the shop estimated to replace all kinds of stuff which the insurance adjuster agrees with. Some of the higher priced items are the fuel tank (I could only find a tiny scratch), The front and rear wheels (I cant find a thing wrong with them), the subframe (I highly doubt its damaged), handlebars (also can't find damage or misalignment), Both tires (they were a few weeks old and I can't find any skid marks or anything, they are in brand new condition), all kinds of other seemingly undamaged parts are on the repair estimate as well.

You can barely even tell the bike was wrecked by looking at it. It also fires right up and sounds great. The shop that did the estimate even says the motor is fine. I'm under the assumption someone is gaining off of this but I can't figure out who. Maybe the shop who did the estimate (which doesn't sell new ducati's but does sell used ducati's) estimated the repair so high that it would get totaled on purpose in hopes they could buy the salvage and keep it or sell it. I still can't figure out what's going on and who is gaining. Maybe the insurance company plans on selling the salvage for a high price? I don't understand.

Originally Posted by Bill A

It sure seems like there are BIG pieces of the story missing. They wouldn't total the bike for broken plastic and mirrors.

As for the cause...it could be anything:
- entering into a corner too hot resulting in a crash
- debris on the road
- critter on the roadway
- any number of things

We'll probably never know (at least with the limited amount of info provided).

The important take-aways for me are:
- I am glad you are here to tell the story
- Always wear your gear (I'm glad you learned that lesson)
- "It" can happen to anyone anytime. Always ride carefully.

[****]

No problem.
Not trying to be a Monday morning quarter back....

As I hope you would already know by now, street riding (especially the F1098) is far different, than riding any dirtbike....even if that DB was a CRF450.

Do you know if your insurance has any clause for aftermarket parts? Or if you already paid, on your premium, a separate clause that would take care of your gear/after market parts? Read your policy. We can all advise you and all...but YOU are going to need to review your policy and fight for yourself. No one is going to do that for you.

The best advice I think I could give you, is buy that bike back from the insurance company, and take the VERY NEXT track day you can. One track day is going to teach you a shit-ton. Something that you probably should've done prior to throwing a leg over the F1098, for the first time.

Bill A,
His frame could've been scratched, needing replacement thereof. That alone is like 14 hours of work, if needing to swap out parts from Frame1 to Frame2. I don't think there's anything missing from his story. The F1098 is a naked bike. All kinds of shit will need to be replaced, in order to bring it back to the same condition as it was before the accident.

[Knoxvillan]

From a guy that works in a 13 line dealership stand point, your dealer is not likely to try to total the bike out in hopes that you will buy a used bike. They would be making profit on parts and labor by doing the repairs. A dealership does have to cover their pocket by doing the repairs with new parts and replacing all the parts that were damaged, lets say for instance that your wheels look great, you pull out of the dealership and hit a pot hole and your wheel gives at a place that was stress fractured, guess who the liability is going to be pointed at. Thats just my two pennies and +1 to **** buy it back from the insurance company and track it

[mjk778]

I really don't have anything to add that wasn't said already, but am really happy to hear that you are ok.

Any way, my take away is Hope for the best but ALWAYS prepare for the worst.
I shared your story with my brother in law who rides a harley with no gear and one of those beanie helmets. Despite urging from family, He is one of those "you cant ride a harley with a full face" yeah yeah yeah, I get it but its BS. Its just not worth it. I dont understand with some many variables beyond your control how some people still bank on "it wont happen to me".